Rugby 1901 To 1914

Title

Rugby 1901 To 1914

Artist

Miroslava Jurcik

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

In 1903, Australia played its first test against the All Blacks (New Zealand), in front of a crowd of 30,000 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. In 1907, Australia again played the All Blacks, at the same venue as the 1903 match, with crowd numbers reaching 50,000. This figure would not be surpassed again by rugby union at the ground after the start of rugby league in 1908 (the SFS commenced as the Sydney rectangular venue for rugby league and union in 1988).
The New South Wales Rugby League was formed on 8 August 1907 at a meeting at the Bateman’s Hotel in Sydney, New South Wales.
Rugby league split from rugby union over disagreements about whether to pay players. Rugby union's amateur high ideals, irked the working class rugby players who sought compensation for time away from work. A meeting took place at Bateman's Crystal Hotel in Sydney on 8 August 1907, where a resolution was made to form the New South Wales Rugby Football League. They played their first season in 1908.
Such was the impact of the arrival of rugby league, that in 1908, when the touring Wallabies team returned from England, eleven of the players joined rugby league teams. By 1910 rugby league had overtaken rugby union in popularity.
Rugby league is now the most popular spectator sport in New South Wales and Queensland.
By the time of the 1910 British Lions rugby league tour, rugby league was well entrenched as the major winter sport in all of Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, surpassing rugby union. This was a position from which rugby union would never recover in Australia.
This picture was taken at Spirit of Anzac exhibition -part one - life before the war, from a silent film.

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November 8th, 2017

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